NIDHI GUPTA, J.

CM-21254-CII-2023

1. Prayer in this application filed under Section 5 of the Limitation Act, 1963is for condonation of delay of 74 days in filing the accompanying appeal.

2. Heard.

3. For the reasons mentioned in the application which is supported by an affidavit, the same is allowed and delay of 74 days in filing the present appeal is condoned.

FAO-6160-2023

1. The appellant-claimants have filed the present appeal seeking enhancement of the compensation amount of ₹19,97,800/- awarded by the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Amritsar (for short-‘the learned Tribunal) vide Award dated 01.05.2023, passed in MACP No. 59 of 2021 dated 28.04.2021 filed under Section 166 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. The 05 claimants are the: i) 57-year-old father; ii) 30-year-old widow; iii) 2 minor children; and iv)57-year-old mother of deceased- Gurmeet Singh, who was 30 years old at time of accident.

2. Brief facts of the case are that the learned Tribunal on the basis of pleadings and evidence adduced before it concluded that deceased-Gurmeet Singh, had died due to the injuries suffered by him in a motor vehicular accident that took place on 21.04.2021 due to the rash and negligent driving of Truck/Trolla bearing registration No. PB-05-N- 9833 (hereinafter ‘the offending vehicle’) by respondent No.2-Satnam Singh; owned by respondent No. 1-Narinder Singh; and insured by respondent No. 3-Insurance Company. Ld. Tribunal awarded compensation as above; and directed the respondents to deposit the awarded amount before the Tribunal within 03 months from the date of Award, failing with the claimants are entitled to simple interest @ 7.5% per annum on the awarded amount from the date of filing the claim petition till actual realization. All the respondents were held liable to pay the compensation jointly and severally.

3. The only ground on which the ld. Counsel for the claimants seeks enhancement is that the learned Tribunal has failed to grant interest upon the amount of compensation from the date of filing the claim petition till actual realization. It is submitted that vide impugned Award, the respondents have been directed to ‘…deposit the awarded amount before the Tribunal within three months from today, failing which the claimants shall also be entitled to 7.5% simple interest per annum on the said awarded amount from the date of filing of the claim petition till realization of the whole compensation amount.’

4. Learned counsel submits that it is only in case the respondents fail to deposit the aforesaid awarded amount within 03 months from the date of Award, that the claimants have been held entitled to simple interest @ 7.5% per annum from the date of filing of claim petition till realization of the compensation amount. Whereas, in the first instance itself, appellants were entitled to interest from the date of filing of claim petition. In support, learned counsel for the appellant-claimants relies upon judgments of Hon’ble the Apex Court in Bijoy Kumar Dugar vs. Bidhyadhar Dutta and others, Law Finder Doc Id # 119539; and Sunil Sharma and others vs. Bachitar Singh and others, Law Finder Doc Id # 250664.

5. No other argument is raised on behalf of the appellants. I have heard learned counsel and perused the case file in detail. I find no merit in the submissions advanced by learned counsel for appellants.

6. It is well established position in law that grant of interest by the learned Tribunal is a matter of discretion and cannot be claimed by the claimants by way of entitlement. In this regard, it is apposite to refer to judgment of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in Abati Bezbaruah vs. Dy. Director General, Geological Survey of India and another; Law Finder Doc Id # 117404, the relevant para of which reads as under:-

“18. Three decisions were cited before us by Mr. A. P. Mohanty, learned counsel appearing on behalf of the appellant, in support of his contentions. No ratio has been laid down in an